Oliver! swinging into The Burnley Mechanics

Laura Longworth

Musical theatre will burst on stage like sunshine when Valley Academy rolls into town.

Bathing the stage in dance and drama and casting rays of iconic musical hits, the adult section of this highly-acclaimed theatre company will bring family favourite Oliver! to The Burnley Mechanics.

Dipping into the celebrated world of novelist Charles Dickens, the cast will deliver all the traditional elements of Lionel Bart’s stage adaptation while spinning the show in its own signature style.

Director Grant Bromley, who also plays gang-leader Fagin in the show, said: “The audience will be treated to a version of Oliver! on a scale they have never seen before. They can expect up to 100 children descending on the stage from every corner of the auditorium for the opening number, Food Glorious Food. And that’s just the beginning!”

A full live orchestra will take the production to grand heights in a bid to recreate the success of the company’s last offerings: Grease, 2014; Les Miserables, 2015; Starlight Express, 2016; and Hairspray, presented by the youth section last April.

It’s a history of hits that has earned the company an award-winning status: its community choir Valley Aloud, for instance, topping both the Adult Choirs and the Pop, Rock & Gospel categories at Burnley Music Festival; and the adult company taking home National Operatic Dramatic Association’s North West gongs for Best Panto and Best Comedy Performance.

“We have assembled an all-star adult cast from all over Lancashire, supported by children from Valley Academy in Rossendale,” Grant added, “and the results are epic!”

The show runs from Tuesday to Saturday at 7-30pm (Saturday matinee at 2-30pm).